But restrains authorities from carrying out demolitions or further sealing of buildings

The Supreme Court on Friday ordered status quo in respect of 27 shops and establishments that had been sealed in the T. Nagar area for violating building rules. However, the court restrained the authorities from sealing other shops or demolition of buildings (including the 27 shops that had been sealed) pursuant to the show cause notices issued to them.

A Bench of Justice Dalveer Bhandari and Justice Dipak Verma, after hearing senior counsel Aryama Sundaram and counsel V. Balaji, for the petitioner, Ranaganathan Street Merchants Association, and Additional Advocate General Guru Krishna Kumar passed this order on a special leave petition from the association against the sealing and closure of shops in T. Nagar on October 31.

Mr. Sundaram submitted that the shops were sealed without even giving the owners an opportunity to put forth their contentions. He said the government had brought an ordinance to regularise the buildings and it was to be made into an Act.

Justice Bhandari asked the AAG, “Is it proper for the High Court to pass an order without even hearing them, when they say they are in existence for 20 or 25 years. Principles of natural justice demand that they must be heard and appropriate orders are passed on their applications. We are not saying anything on merits.”

The Bench while disposing of the present SLP ordered status quo and made it clear that there should be no further sealing or demolition. In respect of the shops already sealed, the Bench asked the High Court to pass appropriate directions after hearing the petitioners when the matter is taken up on November 30. The SLP said it was directed against the sudden closure of famous business establishments, textile showrooms and shops in existence for decades.

While the Chennai Corporation sealed 21 buildings, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Area sealed six buildings on October 31. As a result, not only the owners but also thousands of employees were rendered jobless.

The shopkeepers were aggrieved that buildings were sealed by declaring them as unauthorised and illegal, when their applications for regularisation were still pending before the authorities concerned for whom huge amounts had been collected. The SLP said that in not considering their representations to show cause notices issued to them, they were deprived of an opportunity of proper hearing.

The SLP said the authorities had resorted to vague criteria in declaring the buildings as unauthorised without any guidelines.

Further, terming them serious violations, water and power supply and sewerage connections were disconnected, followed by cancellation of trade licences and these were fraught with serious consequences. It sought a direction to quash the interim order and a direction to open their shops forthwith.

These buildings were already served with stop work notices during constuction, Demolation Notices after constuctions, at the time of approval the building owners gave undertaking to the corporation / CMDA stating that they will adher to the building rules, Development Control rules etc. The Madras High court already passed order with regard regulaisation scheme brought by the Govt of Tamilnadu regulirsing the unauthorised constuructions, these gready builders deviated, violated all the norms, rules, safety complience, and they are running the business making huge undue profits at the risk of general people and state which is well against the Human rights. Therefore this is wake time for the citizen to stand united against these rule brakers, who corrupted the officials, who do not have any business, moral ethics to carry out their operations, their employees will definetly get their jobs within shorttime and their literly working as slaves in the buildings without any labour policies.

from:
Ganesh Narasimhan

Posted on: Nov 16, 2011 at 13:14 IST

Apex court has proved again that it has no clue. Principle of natural justice... what crap is this? What about justice to normal powerless citizens of the state who owns that property and who has to walk through that road or drive their vehicles there. The store owners do not maintain the roadways properly and encroach to their heart's content and provide no parking facilities. they should be demolished and their stores should be moved outside the city, somewhere in ECR or OMR. If not, they should agree to consolidate their stores and move into one bigger mall. The remaining place should be built as parking lots. the store owners should pay for this. If not, let the state demolish the stores and reclaim the encroached land.

from:
Srini

Posted on: Nov 13, 2011 at 01:12 IST

First, why the shop owners build unauthorised structures? Does it mean that freedom to exercise one's right lies with individual and there is NO law to govern them. If wealthy shop owners can do it - why can't common citizen do it.Their act has put many common people to inconvenience. Can the shop owners agree to take such inconvenience by themselves? The shop owners should pay from their wealth to all the jobless people of their shop, instead of propagating false message and taking sympathy vote of their staff.
Second why did the authorities leave it for so long. This clearly signals a weak / flawed government. "Shopkeepers now saying that they are aggrieved that buildings were sealed by declaring them as unauthorised and illegal......" - what sort of message is sent to the public. Tomorrow anyone can do a mistake and then pay fine to get it regulated - Is it DEMOCRACY!!! There are exceptions, but in India it is used as a vehicle to get regulated...and has to STOPPED!

from:
Bala Viswanathan

Posted on: Nov 12, 2011 at 12:34 IST

The previous regime and civic authorities had probably all been heavily bribed to allow these illegal constructions.Typical of the various state governments which I choose to call "The Regularization Raj",the establishments had been assured of regularization of all illegalities obviously for heavy consideration through an ordinance later to be converted into an Act.One only hopes that the Supreme Court's orders while giving temporary relief to the establishments should not be a precursor for condoning the illegalities and regularization later giving courage to future wrongdoers not only to mock the laws of the land but take it for granted that "Crime does indeed pay".

from:
Raj Kumar

Posted on: Nov 12, 2011 at 06:24 IST

The Apex court, unfortunately has no idea how much hardships these encroachments and violations by building in T.Nagar were causing to traffic and public. The counsels for the traders seems to be advocates of devil, despite knowing the facts. If such court orders are to remain, it will dishearten the common man's belief on judiciary and dampen the sprits of government machinery, who are doing their job.